On The Run
by Shreyy95-MischiefManaged
Summary: A story of fight, pain and recovery. The story of the war. Told from the point of view of Dean Thomas. Set in DH from after the scene by the salmon stream. My first big story so please R&R!
1. Reflection

On The Run

Chapter 1 : Reflection

Dean Thomas sat on the damp evening grass. To his far right, beyond the trees, he could hear the motorway. The cars were zooming past, racing against each other in their anxiety to get home for this was about the time the offices in the big cities closed. He wondered what his mother must be doing right now; he had told her and Steven to quit their jobs, take Katie and Jess and go into hiding. He hadn't risked staying with them in case they were targeted as well. There was no point in dragging them into hiding in the magical world where they would not be able to keep up. They were better off at Rhonda's anyway.

He tried not to worry. Trying to divert his thoughts elsewhere wasn't working. It was as if some great force was hell bent of keeping him depressed and brooding. He wondered if this stupid war would ever end. Gentle breeze swept over him as if trying to relax him and he took a deep breath in, thinking of home. He smelt a fresh wooden, flowery smell that reminded him of the outskirts of the Forbidden Forest. It was mixed with something else, what was it...? Was it... butter icing on cupcakes? It was tantalisingly familiar and welcoming. He closed his eyes, trying hard to recall the image that went with it. In his mind's eye, something sparkly blinded him for a moment and then disappeared. Behind it was a warm, bright glow. Hissing, crackling sounds seemed to be coming from it. Dean knew where this was from and sighed contentedly, allowing himself to remember.

The bright glow! The sound! He now concentrated on the sounds alone and more flooded into his ears. There was the constant scratching of quill on paper in the background. Faint chattering. Someone shouted 'Oi!' followed by swearing out loud. Dean smiled to himself – 'Ron and Hermione.' He could hear Seamus shuffling his pack of Exploding Snap. And then laughter. Loud, clear, carefree laughter (his own mixed with someone else's) that kept ringing in his ears, making his eyes burn, breaking his heart into a thousand pieces.

He knew he would give anything to be in the Gryffindor Common Room again now. To be able to stare into the crackling fire and listen to all his friends. He wished he'd had the chance to see them and Mum and Katie just one more time before disappearing – probably because he wasn't sure if he was going to live. Dean wasn't the type to give death much thought, but now that the possibility was so real, he simply wanted to see Katie, Seamus, Mum, Parvati or Neville for what could be the last time.

His throat tightened at the thought. He swallowed his emotions and suddenly he was angry. Angry and indignant and defiant and shaking and burning. His grip tightened and sparks shot out of the end of his wand.

Not really caring that there might be a Muggle around, Dean stood up and pointed his wand at a thick, fallen branch at the foot of the tree in front of him. 'Reducto!' he said in a cold, angry whisper. He wasn't sure if the curse worked on plants and trees but it had the desired effect. The branch exploded, throwing bits of broken tree, bark and singed leaves at him, the destruction he had caused giving him some sort of fierce pleasure.

He then heard Gornuk's affronted grunt and Ted's surprised yelp accompanied by a 'Blimey! Thought it was rampaging Death Eaters!' He looked around to see bits of tree bark dug into Griphook's ear (he couldn't laugh, this one was easily offended) and Dirk sneezing behind him due to all the dust.

'Sorry', Dean muttered, 'I was just...'

'Frustrated', Dirk finished for him.

'Don't worry son, happens to the best of us.' Ted said kindly and went back to looking at the photo in his hand. In it was him and his wife, a dark woman rather beautiful for her age though he couldn't help but think he'd seen some of that face somewhere. Next to the couple stood a very pretty young witch whose hair switched from blonde to violet, his daughter, holding hands with (and this had surprised him at first) his former DADA teacher. They all looked so happy that Dean began to feel some of his anger creeping back into him again.

Dirk Creswell came over and sat down next to him. 'You know I had just turned up to work when the stupid Muggle Born Registration Commission came into action.' Dean looked at the man, wondering why he was telling him this. He nodded anyway and Dirk went on.

'I thought to myself "If they see me running now, they'll know something is up and they'll stop me". So I stayed, hoping to not be noticed till afternoon so that I could sneak out with the others who usually leave at lunch.' Dirk smiled here as of enjoying a private joke.

'They thought I was related to the Archeous Creswell. They didn't think that the Head of the Goblin Liaison Office could be a common muggle-born.' This time the smile on his face was sneering and bitter and Dean understood how he felt. He remembered Umbridge's remark when she'd overheard him tell Seamus that he would rather work shelf-stacking in a Muggle store than work at the Ministry when discussing career options. She had said condescendingly, 'I am not surprised with your "_Muggle"_ ambitions, Mr. Thomas. It wouldn't be an abomination should you decide to stick to them, hee hee.'

'But Runcorn knew', Dirk carried on, bringing Dean's attention back to the present. 'I think he had once heard me complaining about the impracticality of quills compared to pens or something stupid like that one time and was suspicious. He ordered an inspection of my family tree the minute he saw me, I think. And then, in about half an hour, I was put in front of that bloody toad.' He scowled in great distaste. 'Probably wanted to put me up as an example that no one was an exception, that they would hunt each _"mudblood"_ down.'

'Didn't work very well for them though – the setting an example bit, I mean. Had me well scared that I was off to Azkaban, thought I was a complete goner at that point. But then they went off and stuck me with Dawlish. I remember him from school, the bumbling, gullible fool. All I had to so was distract him, and I could snatch his wand and make my escape!' He laughed and Dean joined in.

'But like I said, I thought I was doomed to death and worse when that bitch sentenced me but look now. I mean it's not much, but it's better than them Dementors, eh?' Dean agreed.

'Dirk?' Ted called from the side. 'I think those Muggle stores must be closed now. We could try Apparating into one for some food.' 'Allright', Dirk said and stood up. He nodded to Dean and him and Ted started making their way through the trees out into the open.

While the goblins carried on their furious debate over something in Gobbledegook, Dean started thinking. He understood why Dirk had shared his story. The guy was almost chucked into Azkaban and one only had to look at pictures of Bellatrix Lestrange to see what that place did to people. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he made the connection between Ted's wife and the Lestrange woman.

But Dean was thinking about Dirk. They man hadn't given him any encouragement or advice. That wasn't needed though. His story alone was enough to make Dean understand what the former Goblin Liaison Office head had meant. In war, you need to survive to make an impact. There will be good stuff and bad stuff happening to you. They key to survival was in keeping your head on the right way round through the bad stuff and capitalising on the good. And that even though blowing trees up every now and then for blowing off some steam is okay, it is quite unnecessary and not quite recommended. He smiled to himself sheepishly but now more at peace with himself.

CRACK!

Dirk and Ted almost landed on top of the goblins and quickly got up. Dean hurried over to whether they were. Dirk was drenched in sweat and shaking. He had balled his fists in an attempt to stop himself from losing it. Ted looked up at Dean. He looked just as shaken but was able to speak.

'Quick! We need to get away from here! Dementors! Followed by Death Eaters! They don't know where we are but they're comi – AAARRGGH!'


	2. Fight

On The Run

Chapter 2 : Fight

'_Quick! We need to get away from here! Dementors! Followed by Death Eaters! They don't know where we are but they're comi – AAARRGGH!'_

Ted ducked, pulling Dirk down with him as an orange jet of light shot through where they were stood a second ago. It hit the tree behind them and it caught fire illuminating the whole area. There was no time to put the fire out so Dean quickly turned around and cast a spell to contain it. He then turned around to where the curse had come from, expecting more to come or Death Eaters to come bursting into the mini-clearing.

Meanwhile, the fire seemed to have put some warmth back into Dirk's body, who stood up shakily. He and Ted also faced the direction of the Death Eaters, wands raised, prepared for an attack.

No attack came.

The area became quiet instead. The air of urgency and hurry was dispelled. But something wasn't right. Dean knew that the other men felt it too because their wands were still raised, the goblins cowered behind them. Something was definitely wrong. It kept getting quieter. It also looked like it was getting darker – the fire behind them was going out because of the cold. The kind of cold that could only mean one thing.

Suddenly, the fire went out. Dean started shivering. 'Expecto Patronum!' he heard Ted shout and the silver of his patronus shone light on their faces. Dirk shouted something as well and the bright dolphin was joined by his bear.

But their patronuses were fading. And the cold, the dark was spreading so fast. It washed over him. He could hear voices in his head, a lot of scuffling followed by a shout of 'Dumbledore! He's dead!' piercing the tension. There was panic everywhere. He felt his resistance crumble. All the good people seemed to die. What was the point of fighting? What if he just gave in?

'Dean! Snap out of it!' he heard a shout from his left. Dirk was stood there, staring at Dean with enormous intensity. His and Ted's patronuses were barely keeping up. But Dirks eyes still had conviction in them, sporting a look that said 'I'm going to keep fighting till the end and it'd be best if your ass decided to join in.'

Dean screwed his eyes shut. He imagined the outskirts of the Forbidden Forest where he usually hung out with Seamus. His best mate was there holding hands with Lavender. Neville was there too and behind him was Katie, talking to Parvati. She said something that made the older girl laugh – loud, clear and full of life. The sound was ringing in his ears as he cried, 'Expecto Patronum!'

A silver tiger now joined the dolphin and the bear. The three patronuses did what the two previously could not. The cold was disappearing and it seemed like everything was normal again.

'Stupefy!' came a shriek and hit Griphook's head and the goblin fell to the ground, unconscious. 'We need to get out of here!' Dirk shouted, grabbing Dean's arm and taking the fallen goblin and turned on the spot.

Nothing happened. It seemed that the Death Eaters had put up an anti-Apparition ward making it impossible for them to escape.

Then they came. Out into the clearing jumped two, five, six Death Eaters, all masked. There was a tense moment of silence when the two sides just stared at each other, assessing the opponent. Ted then broke it and sent a stunner at one of them and the fighting began.

Something hit his left arm and he felt like it was being held over a flame. It burnt and his skin started reddening and blistering. The heat was spreading to the rest of his body now. He muttered the counter curse and went back into the fight. It was dark but the constant firing of spells made it easy to see what was going on.

He joined the other two men. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Gornuk drag a semi conscious Griphook behind a wide tree for safety. He continually kept firing curses and hexes, mentally thanking Harry and his DA sessions. There was no point in shielding so he simply dodged the oncoming curses. 'Impedimenta! Stupefy! Petrificus Totalus!' His stunning spell hit one of them. The other tried to dodge his Body Bind and walked straight into the path of one of Dirk's spells. He doubled over, howling in pain, hit his head on something and passed out.

The fallen Death Eaters weren't the leader of the group because the anti-Apparition Jinx was still in place. An evil, sinister-looking, red curse hit Ted. He cried out in pain and held his arm which seemed to have been cut. The cut must have been very bad, because he was bleeding profusely now. The pain and the blood also made it impossible for him to use his wand and concentrate on the fight.

The others took full advantage of Ted's weakness and he suddenly was on the receiving end of four different curses. He got out of the way of the first two but the other two hit him and he fell down on his knees. Dean swiftly moved over to stand in front of the older man to stop him from being attacked and he saw Dirk do the same.

But now it was two and a half of them against four Death Eaters. They were being backed out of the clearing into the thicker part of the woods. The Death Eaters were laughing. Laughing at their helplessness and sure defeat. Dean saw Dirk pulling Ted and then felt himself being yanked away and dragged behind the tree where the goblins were for cover.

Ted looked completely battered but he was conscious and listening to Dirk who was talking. 'I need to attack the brute to the far left, I think it's Avery, to remove the anti-Apparition Jinx. He seems to be the leader of the gang. Then I can grab you, Dean can take these two and we can leave. We can go to the forest behind the mines in Worcestershire. There aren't that many people there, we won't be spotted.'

'What do you want me to do?' Dean asked.

Before Dirk could reply, Ted interrupted him, 'What do you mean, grab me? I'm okay now. Look!' he showed him his arm which had indeed stopped bleeding but he still looked drained. He carried on nonetheless, 'If that is Avery, then I'm taking him. And you will not make me sit out.' He added giving Dirk a look that finally made Dean appreciate the loyalty and relentless hard work that Hufflepuffs always embodied. Dirk seemed to notice it too for gave in and nodded in a resigned way.

'Come on out and play! Or are we getting a little tired? You're not scared are you, you filthy mudbloods?' the Death Eater called out mockingly.

Dirk jumped out from behind the tree shouted 'Protego!' Ted and Dean followed, taking the cover the shield provided. Ted went on to attack Avery and Dean started fighting the other Death Eater. He dodged a curse.

Dean then heard a crack followed by a cry so full of pain and anguish that he could never believe it had come from Dirk Creswell. Dean whipped around to see Dirk's face contorted with pain. He was holding his leg which was bloody and broken. Ted was cornered by two Death Eaters. Dean sent a Full Body Bind at one of them and suddenly there was a whooshing sound and he got a funny feeling making him fell like he could properly breathe again, a sense of claustrophobia that he didn't know had gripped him was now gone – the anti-Apparition ward was down. They could leave now but Ted was fighting the other Death Eater.

Dean rushed over to Dirk who was now trying to stand up behind a semi-permanent Shield charm. He helped him stand up muttering 'Ferula!' binding his leg. A green curse came at then with rushing speed, announcing clearly that the Death Eaters were finally bored of their little game and now were fighting to kill. The Shield charm protecting them was broken and they were forced to hide behind a tree.

'Go! Take Griphook and Gornuk and go to the forest behind the minefield.' Dirk said. 'Take them and go, I'll bring Ted; he doesn't know that we can leave yet.' Dean opened his mouth to protest but at that moment a curse so powerful hit the tree that it shook the whole tree and a few branches fell out. 'Go! I'll get Ted and we'll see you there in about five minutes! Trust me.'

Without waiting for a reply, Dirk joined the fray again fighting the remaining two Death Eaters while constantly inching closer to where Ted was duelling the third. Dean took the cover the man provided and ran over to where the goblins were. He reached them and grabbed their arms.

Then he heard it. A cry of 'Avada Kedavra!' louder than the rest of the sounds in the wood. A cry let out with such conviction that Dean knew the curse had found its target without even looking. But he spun around anyway to see Ted Tonks fall to the ground. He was dead.

The Death Eater fighting Ted, now victorious, turned to Dean and raised his wand. 'Go! Dean! Leave now!' Dirk shouted.

Dean saw a jet of orange light rushing at him and did what Dirk asked him to do. He closed his eyes, tightened his grip on the two goblins and turned on the spot. He felt Gornuk's arm jerk in his hand but held on, concentrated with all his willpower on the forest behind the mines, hoping it would take them to safety.


	3. Loss

On The Run

**AN: So so sorry about the late chapter. I have a reason; exams :( But hey! I'm back! I have made some changes as I found out that Dean did have a step father, but nothing else has changed. Here is Chapter 3! Hope you like it. R&R! **

Chapter 3 : Loss

_Dean saw a jet of orange light rushing at him and did what Dirk asked him to do. He closed his eyes, tightened his grip on the two goblins and turned on the spot. He felt Gornuk's arm jerk in his hand but held on, concentrating with all his willpower on the forest behind the mines, hoping it would take them to safety._

The wood behind the mines. The wood behind the mines. The wood behind the mines. The wood behi –

CRACK!

THUNK!

He appeared in the midst of some bushes. The minute he appeared he lost his balance and the grip on the two frail arms and fell over. He knew, immediately, that something wasn't right.

Dean opened his eyes. He stood up and reluctantly, looked down, instantly wishing he hadn't. Shakily, he tried to compose himself but the image kept flashing in his mind – lying where they had landed, in the place of where Gornuk should have been, an arm. Just an arm, covered in dark, red blood.

He recalled Ted falling to the ground, Dirk commanding him to leave and a curse coming right at him before he had left. He didn't know what the curse had been but whatever it was, must have hit the goblin before he could Dissapparate.

He could make out some other details as slowly his eyes adjusted and he started taking in his surroundings. The wood was a few feet behind him and he could make out the fences of the mines two hundred yards to his left. It must have been around midnight and the whole place was as silent as death.

Death... The word echoed in his mind. Dean bit his lower lip and closed his eyes. However, a sad, sneaky tear managed to escape his closed eyes and made its way down his cold, sweaty face. Before he could stop himself, more followed. How could it have happened? Why did it have to happen? He simply stood there, crying silently, looking ahead but not really seeing anything.

Ted Tonks was dead. So was Gornuk by the looks of it. While he hadn't cared much for the goblin, Ted's death hit him hard. Somehow, he had grown quite accustomed to the reassuring, grandfatherly air about the man. His friendship with the older man was something he was quite grateful for, considering his strained relationship with Steven. He gave a shuddering gasp, wiped his face and tried bringing himself under control.

Griphook was sat some distance away from him, leaning against a tree, his breathing uneven and wheezy. He supposed he should go over and comfort him but Dean was frozen, waiting. He felt drained, his muscles fatigued and he gave in to the feeling and sat down on the ground.

The cold night air was sweeping over him. The trees behind him swayed in the light breeze, branches brushing against each other. The rustling sound picked up, as if trying to tell him something. But he ignored it and kept his eyes on the spot where he had appeared moments ago, waiting.

The trees went on, whispering in his ears but he didn't want to listen to what they had to say. 'You're going mad, you know that?' he told himself. However, he knew that the restless sounds in his ears were right. His wait was worthless, pointless. It had been at least half an hour since they had arrived here, if not more. He fought to control his emotions as he realised that Dirk wasn't coming. That he was gone as well.

Fresh tears welled up in his eyes and his mind, determined to make him miserable, kept flashing him random, painful memories. A nameless, faceless stranger stood at the door, shouting something and walking out. Leaving the Hogwarts Express, knowing that this could be the last time he ever saw the scarlet engine or more importantly, his friends. Mum, taking Jess and Katie, her face wet with tears, and leaving.

And now Dirk and Ted were gone. He was quite abandoned, alone, yet again. With great resolve, he forced his limbs into action. He made his way over to Griphook. He looked calmer and was slowly, steadily massaging his hands.

'Grip – 'he tried to say but a painful, hoarse, croak issued form his mouth instead. He coughed heavily, ignoring the pain in his chest as he did so and tried again.

'Griphook,' Griphook looked up at him, his dark yellow eyes dry and emotionless. 'I don't think Dir-; I think we ought to move. We need to go someplace more sheltered. Or at least deeper into the woods. It's very exposed here. Should the muggles see us -'

'What about Gornuk?' Griphook asked, his face unreadable, but Dean was sure that he caught a hint of accusation and defiance in his reedy voice. Did he actually think Gornuk was still alive? Dean didn't know what to say; he was worse than Seamus and Ron put together when it came to tact.

'I am sorry about Gornuk. We err,' he tried tentatively in what he hoped was a gentle tone. 'We could umm, try and bury his...'

'mghrys.. care anyway' mumbled Griphook and turned his head, studying the mine fence.

Dean hadn't fully heard what the goblin had said but kept quiet, waiting patiently for the creature to get up or say something. A few seconds passed. But no response came from Griphook. The goblin's lack of contribution was beginning to ticking him off now. He wished for some reaction from Griphook, getting nothing off him.

Dean Thomas had never been in a situation like this before; where he was the person in charge. He did give his best to every cause he believed in and every fight worth fighting, but always as the silent supporter. Between him and Seamus, he'd been the quieter part of the duo. When they had rebelled against Umbridge, he had joined in the movement, not started it. Ever since he had met Ted and later Dirk, he had let the two men take charge; they would be the ones to decide where they should go next, when they should move, while he did whatever he could to help.

Now that they were gone, he was lost. What was he supposed to do? He didn't have Ted's jovial, kind personality. Nor did he have Dirk's diplomatic, clever way with the goblins. He was just a seventeen year old school drop-out on the run whose biggest achievement so far in life, was to manage an 'O' in Transfiguration and stay alive on raw fish for eight months. He felt another pang of guilt and loss at everything the two men had offered to him and for every way that they had helped him and suddenly felt ashamed that he couldn't even carry on without them. He felt useless and incapable.

He pulled himself out of his own thoughts. Ted and Dirk had died fighting and it was thanks to them that he had escaped. The only way he could repay them was to at least make sure that he and Griphook were safe.

Gripping the goblin's arm firmly yet kindly, and trying to bring some authority in his voice he said, 'Griphook, we need to move. You know it would be foolish to stay here.'

The last sentence was a mistake, he realised, as the goblin's arm suddenly became too hot to hold.

'Ow!' he exclaimed, letting go in surprise and pain. 'What the bloody hell did you do that for?'

'Because I felt like it.' Griphook replied coldly.

'What? I - ...the hell? Why – What do mean?' Dean spluttered. What was going on?

'And stop ordering me around. I'm not your house elf.'

'I wasn't ordering you, you idiot, I just want us to be safe!'

'Fat load of good it did for Gornuk –'

'SHUT UP! In case you failed to notice, Ted and Dirk are dead as well. Or does that not mean anything to you? You're not the only one who suffered tonight! So just shut UP!

'At least you lot can defend yourself. You have a wand. YOU, are a wizard.' Griphook's voice was rising with each word. 'Just because I can't do anything does not give YOU the right to walk all over ME! Gornuk died out there, I almost did. And what protection did we have?'

'DIRK AND TED DIED TRYING TO GET YOUR ASS OUT OF THERE, NOT FIGHTING JUST BECAUSE THEY COULD! I'M ONLY TRYING TO MAKE SURE WE DON'T GET CAUGHT, YOU EFFING FOOL! FOR GOD'S SAKE CAN YOU NOT SEE THAT? NOW WILL YOU PLEA-'

He stopped. Terror filled his heart as he hear it: he wheezy, sinister laugh. He turned around to see a face he had only seen in wanted posters before. A face belonging to a scraggy man with long, dirty grey hair and yellow eyes and teeth. Teeth, which looked perilously sharp and had a horrifying history of ruining many lives, bared in a disgusting, animalistic smile.

'Tut tut tut,' mocked the voice of Fenrir Greyback as he advanced dangerously towards them. 'Why my dear mudblood, didn't your stinking mother never teach you that it's bad manners to raise your voice?'


End file.
